Armand Serrano of Walt Disney Visited FEU Tech

Posted: December 16, 2016

By Pauline Dominique Andoloy, The Innovator

Armand Serrano, an internationally renowned Filipino artist from Walt Disney Animation Studios and Sony Pictures Animation visited FEU Tech last September 13, 2016 to share some inspirational talk in the field of animation.

Th event was attended by the art-enthusiast students who were eager to hear many things from him. As Mr. Serrano shared his experiences and stories when he worked on animated films, such as Mulan, Big Hero 6 and Zootopia, students showed their interest in pursuing the film and animation industry in the near future. He told the students how he jumped from Civil Engineering to Animation, and how braved the challenges because of that decision.

More interesting trivia from Mr. Serrano were revealed during the question and answer segment of the seminar. Here are some of them:

Q: How can an artist balance what he wants vs. clients’ requirements?

Mr. Serrano: Artists must first, prioritize the needs and wants of their clients. It is always important to satisfy them before putting something you think that is necessary.

Q: Could you give us some tips on storyboarding?

Mr. Serrano: Everything you put there needs to have a meaning and a purpose, you don’t put something and doesn’t have a [sic] matter at all. It takes a lot of practice to make you a remarkable artist.

Q: How about the proper palette for illustrations and color blending to make perfect visualization of stories?

Mr. Serrano: Colors are moody and that they are quite complex for an artist. They may change during morning, afternoon and night since lighting is immensely associated with color. Thus, it takes a lot of patience to completely understand it since it also depends on how an artist observes his environment.

He ended the event with a piece of advice to students. “The more versatile you are the more companies will eye on you. The more styles, the more idea(s) you have, the more a company will keep you. Don’t disregard the power of social network, aside from practice, learn how to market yourself, identify your weakness and spend more time on it.”